January 1987 BBC Weather forecast

[Frosticle]

John Kettley here just hinting at the extreme cold about to hit the UK in January 1987. Wish I could find his infamous 'bright tie' forecast. How exciting this must have been to watch at the time!

 

[SukiBrown]

 Frosticle I remember watching the 11th January 1987 forecast at my grandmother's house after lunch, day after my 18th birthday. Would love to see that forecast again. 

[I remember Atlantic 252]

 

[Greyhound81]

January 1985 and January 1987 look like 2 very cold months.  What month was more memorable for extreme cold?

Edited January 26 by Greyhound81

[Don]

 Greyhound81 January 1985 for duration and January 1987 for exceptionally cold temperatures.

[Jackmonday06]

 Greyhound81 I always think 1985 was better for the fact that there was more frequent snowfalls and the cold lasted longer when you mix the two together your talking about snow on the ground for 3 weeks straight 1987 sounds amazing when its gone within a week it just sounds less nice.

[A Face like Thunder]

10 hours ago, Jackmonday06 said:

I always think 1985 was better for the fact that there was more frequent snowfalls and the cold lasted longer when you mix the two together your talking about snow on the ground for 3 weeks straight 1987 sounds amazing when its gone within a week it just sounds less nice.

Agreed. I was living in Surrey in 1985 and 1987. On 12th Jan 1987, the temperature never rose above 15.6F (-9.2C) at Warlingham (Surrey) and on the following night, the temperature got down to 1F (-17C) at nearby Coulsdon, and that just 12 or so miles from Central London. Even in 1962/3, 1978/9 and Dec 1981, I don't think the temperature ever got that low in Surrey. Frost was almost continuous from 12th to 18th Jan, and on 17th, ice floes were seen on the Thames at Sudbury and East Molesey (Currie). As you say, 1985 lasted longer and was a lot more snowy than 1987, but without the extremes of low temperatures seen two years later. 

[Summer8906]

 Jackmonday06 I think 1987 was better than that in some parts.

One week was extremely cold but I am fairly sure that, in NW Sussex at least, the thaw was only very gradual and temps remained below average for the entire remainder of the month.

I'd have guessed snow on the ground around 10 days in 1987, with deep snow for around a week. I think it disappeared around midweek of the following week, so maybe around the 21st or 22nd: it had gone by the weekend of the 24th/25th.  In 1985 it's easier to remember the precise duration because the thaw was sudden and rapid. It was 15 days (6th-20th) so slightly more, but not vastly so.

We did have it really lucky, those of us who lived through this period. We had 4 Januaries with a very significant snowy spell in the 9 years 1979-87. I can't remember 1979 so very well but I do remember the others well, especially 1985 and 1987.

By contrast we have had precisely two Januaries with a long snowy spell in the years following 1987, i.e. 2010 and 2013 of course, during that short "back to the 80s" era.

Edited January 26 by Summer8906

[Jackmonday06]

 Summer8906 I just think if I could pick a January 2026 to be one of these months I would go with 1985. 

Edited January 26 by Jackmonday06

[Summer8906]

 Jackmonday06 Probably yes, despite my comments on 1987 being a bit better than what some have said, 1985 still clinches it on its duration.

Perhaps two broad classes in those 79-87 winters: 1979 and 1985 (long and protracted) and 1982 and 1987 (shorter but intense). But Jan 1982 then went definitively mild, but 1987 remained cold to the end.

I do wonder whether we are moving to a slightly colder period now, given a number of close-to-average months since June last year. Maybe the next few winters will be slightly less dire than most of those in the past 10 years, at least. Also note how some really cold Januaries are preceded by a coldish one (1978/1979; 1986/1987; 2009/2010). Perhaps next year then ?

Edited January 26 by Summer8906

[LetItSnow]

I find it interesting that the south-east had two spells of extreme cold with some of the coldest days of the century within just two years. Because down Kent way January 1985 had maxima around -6C during some parts of the month. Then of course January 1987 went even further. I would have taken winter 1985 any day though. The cold just kept coming back and it seemed a very snowy winter. The only thing was it did have milder interludes.

 

A dream ‘80s winter would be December 1981 followed by January 1985 and then February 1986. 

[Weather-history]

 Jackmonday06

 

IMO, the meteorological winter of 1986-87 is a bit overrated.  There was that week of severe cold and in some parts huge snowfalls in the middle of January and not much else.  December had a brief wintry spell just before Christmas and I can't remember anything of February 1987. 

 

Can anyone remember anything of February 1987?

[Jackmonday06]

 Weather-history Trevor Harley writes: Mild for the first ten days, then cold until the last couple of days. On the 28th London reached 16C, its warmest February day since 1961. So a mild start long cold middle then a mild again for the last few days not a lot of details but still sounds pretty good note march was very cold this year the coldest since 1970.

[Thundery wintry showers]

The January 1987 spell was more extreme than anything that we had in January 1985 - I've read in a number of sources that it was probably the coldest easterly outbreak of the 20th century - but it just had the one spell. January 1985 had several cold snowy spells in quick succession, none of which were quite as extreme, but for most of the UK January 1985 was the snowier of the two months by a fair margin, both in terms of sleet/snow falling and snow lying.

I mentioned in some other threads that my perceptions of 2006 were skewed by the amazing July. I think the same is often true of the winter of 1986/87 - perceptions get skewed due to how exceptional that January easterly was.

I wasn't old enough to appreciate February 1987, but looking at the stats and the synoptics, it was a pretty average month. The cold anticyclonic spell in the middle had persistent northerly and north-easterly winds which were cold enough to bring some snow showers to northern and eastern regions, but only small amounts on the ground which tended to melt in the sun during the day. By recent standards, that spell could well stand out, but in 1987, following a decade of generally snowy winters, it would have paled into insignificance.

 

[marky810]

December 1981 I opened the front door to go to school and was greeted by snow up to the letterbox. I still went. Jan 82 was also bitter and I believe that’s when the UK record low was recorded. Jan 85, Feb 86 and again Jan 87 were also very cold. The rest of the 80’s winters were then on the mild side especially 88/89.

[Norrance]

Jan 1987 had the one week of severe snow up here in Eastern and Central Scotland whereas 1985 had several snowy spells but with nothing like the severity.

Jan 1985 also suffered up here as being memorable because 1984 had been much more snowy.

[Frosticle]

If anyone is interested, there's an interesting documentary on BBC iPlayer - 'The Paras' - about training for the Parachute Regiment in 1982. The documentary begins on January 11th in Aldershot, in the middle of the freeze. Some quite interesting shots of cadets training in inches of snow and freezing fog. You certainly get a feel for just how cold it was! Hardy bunch, those parachute boys.

Edited January 26 by Frosticle